3 Houston Astros Position Players Who Fell Woefully Short of Expectations

Who were the three position players that disappointed the most for the Houston Astros in 2024?

Sep 28, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Houston Astros third baseman Grae Kessinger (11) and first baseman Jon Singleton (28) celebrate after the Astros beat the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

The 2024 season for the Houston Astros was a bit of a roller coaster ride. 

Things started off poorly, as they found themselves trailing the Seattle Mariners by double-digit games in the American League West race in early June. But, they erased that lead by the end of the month, slowly but surely taking control of the division.

Of course, they were in that hole because of some key players being injured or flat out just not playing well. A lot of those woes were in the lineup, as several players had underwhelming production.

Who disappointed the most? Here are three Astros that fell woefully short of expectations in 2024.

Jose Abreu

What the veteran first baseman gave Houston early in the season was some of the worst production we have seen in modern history at the plate. On April 28th, the team finally made a change, demoting him to the minor leagues.

It was a necessary move as Abreu slashed .099/.156/.113 through his first 77 plate appearances. He was brought back to the Majors on May 27th and lasted about two weeks before he was permanently removed from the roster.

That ended a disappointing two-year stint for the former MVP, whose production fell off a cliff once he left the Chicago White Sox.

Chas McCormick

If it weren’t for Abreu, McCormick would have received a lot more flack than he did. He received his fair share, and rightfully so, as he offered the team virtually nothing positive on the field.

His -0.6 WAR was the second worst, as the aforementioned first baseman was the only player with a worse number. His slash line on the season was .211/.271/.306. Even his defense was underwhelming with a -0.6 dWAR.

That is what landed him on this list instead of his fellow center fielder Jake Meyers, who was nominated for a Rawlings Gold Glove Award.

Jon Singleton

Production couldn’t get much worse at first base in place of Abreu, but what Singleton provided as his replacement wasn’t too much better. His defense was not good, as his -1.5 dWAR was better than only Yordan Alvarez, who had a -1.6 dWAR in left field.

He had a team-worst strikeout rate of 27.4 percent, above the league average of 22.6. His walk rate was solid, but he had the lowest extra-base hit percentage of qualified batters on the team.

Overall, Singleton had a slash line of .234/.321/.386 and an OPS+ of 103. Expect the front office to find an upgrade at first base, and potentially third as well if Alex Bregman departs.